Photo courtesy of Jennifer Andress for Mayor campaign
Councilor Jennifer Andress announced she is running for Mayor of Homewood on June 5, 2025.
Happy Holidays, Homewood!
I am excited to be writing my first-ever Mayor’s Minute for The Homewood Star, as we head into one of the most special times of the year.
I was deeply honored to be sworn in as your new mayor alongside our newly elected City Council. The November swearing-in ceremony also marked Homewood’s official transition to a council-manager form of government, as approved by voters in the 2024 referendum. City Engineer and Director of Engineering and Zoning Cale Smith has been appointed interim city manager. Together with our department heads and dedicated city staff, Cale and I are committed to serving you.
We have many exciting projects underway and on the horizon. In the coming months, we’ll see progress on several major capital initiatives, including the long-awaited diverging diamond interchange at Lakeshore and Interstate 65, completion of the Green Springs “road diet” and pedestrian improvements, and the U.S. 31 access management and pedestrian improvement project. We’re also looking forward to the Central Avenue trail project and the addition of a new trailhead pavilion and restrooms along Shades Creek Parkway.
Our most important upcoming initiative is the city’s comprehensive plan, which officially kicks off in January. Most cities update their master plan every 10 years, and Homewood’s last update was in 2007. This is a much-needed opportunity to look ahead together and define the future of our city.
We’ve partnered with Town Planning & Urban Design Collaborative out of Franklin, Tennessee, to lead this work (fun fact: the founder of the collaborative actually grew up in Vestavia Hills). Their team will visit Homewood later this month, and public meetings will begin in the first quarter of 2026.
We need your ideas, your vision and your participation. Attend the meetings, share your feedback and help shape Homewood’s next two decades.
The city will share information about meetings and other opportunities to get involved on our website, social media and through The Homewood Star. I’ll also be rolling out my Mayor’s Newsletter citywide this month. In addition, we’ll take steps to reach residents who may not use technology so that every voice in Homewood is heard.
Communication has always been a priority for me, and it remains one of my most valuable tools. My former Ward 5 constituents will tell you I’m highly responsive — and that commitment hasn’t changed. You can always reach me at jennifer.andress@homewoodal.org. City Manager Cale Smith is equally responsive at citymanager@homewoodal.org.
As we enter our centennial year, we have so much to be proud of, so much to be thankful for and so much to look forward to. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the extraordinary honor of serving Homewood.
